Apparatus for the manufacture of combustible gas



Sept. 22, 1936.

D. J. YOUNG 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Original Filed April 13, 1927 SPt- 22, 1936- D. J. YOUNG 2,055,190

APPARATUS FOR l"THE MANUFACTURE OF COMBUSTIBLE GAS Original Filed April 13, 1927 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Sept. 22, 1936. D. J. YOUNG 2,055,190

APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF COMBUSTIBLE GAS Original Filed April 15, 1927 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 F L /EF AVO/ one 6cm/ees@ Patented Sept. 22, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE APPARATUS FOB THE MANUFACTUBE F COMBUSTIBLE GAS Danieli. Young, Tacoma, Wash., assignor to Young-Whitwell Gas Process Company, '.lafcoma. Wash., a corporation of Washington 4 claims.. (cl. 1 -11) The invention relates to a new and useful apparatus for the manufactureof motor fuel and similar products. The present application is a division of my application Serial No. 299,380, tiled August 13, 1928, which in turn is a division of an earlier application Serial No. 183.625, filed April 13, 1927. now Patent No. 1,706,686, granted March 26, 1929.

In the manufacture of carbureted water gas.

it is well known that there has always been produced a certain amount of by-product commonly called water gas tar. There are also contained in water gas certain unsaturated hydrocarbons which may be condensed or otherwise extracted from the gas in a known manner. I have discovered that the quality and amount of these tars and unsaturated hydrocarbons can be to a, large extent controlled if means are provided for a control of temperature and other conditions in the various parts of an oil-treating apparatus similar to a water gas set. I have also discovered that the addition of various gases and liquids into such an apparatus under controlled conditions of temperature will materially aifect the production of the tars and hydrocarbons.

The principal object of my invention is accordingly to provide an apparatus similar-to a water gas setfso designed that the temperature and other conditions in the various parts of the apparatus may be easily and readily controlled. It is well known that in the heating of a water gas set, when air is blown through the fuel bed, a producer gas is formed, and that the location of the secondary air to burn this producer gas governs the point of maximum temperatures in the checkerbrick.

A standard water gas set is generally considered to include a generator orfuel chamber, and heat interchanger or interchangers commonly known as the carburetor and superheater. The accepted form of water gas set commonly known as a threeshell set was adopted for structural and operating advantages. Similar results may be obtained in a two or four shell set, but the economic reasons of ease of operation, cost of original construction, ease of repair and maintenance, cost of necessary superstructures such asbuildings and fuel handling equipment, inconvenience of auxiliary appparatus and many factors have proven the three-shell set to be, ordinarily, the most economical and efilcient. I will describe an apparatus similar to the three-shell set. as a preferred design.

The present invention is directed primarily to I an apparatus especially adapted for iiexible control to produce proper temperature and other conditions for the various reactions to best take place and is not concerned specifically with methods of handling the products, either gaseous or liquid, after having been discharged from the set.

The invention may be more readily understood by reference to the accompanying drawings. which are intended for the purpose of illustration only, and are largely diagrammatic in character.

In the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic view showing an arrangement of the gas making and oil treating portion of the apparatus, including the scrubber, or condenser, in which liquid and gaseous products are separated, no portion of the cracking or purifying apparatus for treating the liquids after separation being shown, as any well-known or standard apparatus may be employed for this Purpose; v

Fig. 2 is a vertical section showing a gas generator and two heat interchangers, and the connections for supplying steam, air, gas and fuel, and for withdrawing gas from the set, this construction being slightly different from the arrangement shown in Fig. 1, in that in Fig. 1 all the connections for supplying air. gas or the like are interconnected, and all the gas outlets are interconnected, whereas in Fig. 2 the air and gas inlets are separate and distinct and the various gas oiftakes are also separate from each other;

Fig.`3 is a more detailed top view of the arrangement shown diagrammatically in Fig. l;

Fig. 4 is a bottom sectional view similar to Fig. 3,'but showing the lower connections; and

Fig. 5 is a view showing the relief holder and o scrubber, including the outlet from the scrubber by which gas may be conveyed to a storage holder and liquids conveyed to suitable separators or stills.

The present apparatus has as the basis of its design the standard water gas set, to which is added means for securing added exibility of operation, so that in its preferred form the improved apparatus includes means for selectively introducing air or otherv gases, steam, powdered fuel, oil or other liquids or fuels, and means for selectively withdrawing gas or other products at each of the following points:

1st.-Bottom of generator 2nd.-Top of generator 3rd.-Top of carburetor 4th-Bottom of carburetor 5th-Bottom of superheater 6th.-Top of superheater.

' These specific locations are selected largely for structural and operating reasons. The obiectof these many connections is to provide both an inlet for the various necessary elements employed in the process, and an outlet for the resultant products at every point where' material differences in temperature and other conditions may be expected. and the points selected practically cover all such points. Valves or other means of controlling such inlets and outlets are provided so that the direction of flow through the set may be controlled as desired. For instance, the ow may be from the bottom of the generator through the carburetor and superheater, leaving the set at the top of the superheater, or it may be Just the reverse of this. The flow may be from the bottom of the generator and from the top of the generator, leaving the set at the bottom of the carburetor.

It may also be desirable to4 have connections similar to the old up and down run water gas set so as to make the ow even more flexible,V

although it is believed that such connections necessitating expensive and inefllcient valves for handling hot gases will not be necessary.

In other words, my invention consists in providing exible means for producing the widest possible variety -of conditions of temperature and raw product control in a simplified or modied standard apparatus. y

'I'he apparatus includes as a basis of its design the usual water gas set, with certain modiiications to be described hereinafter, and comprisesthe generator or fuel chamber I. and the heat interohangers 2 and 3, commonly known Aas the carburetor and superheater respectively.

These shells are of substantially standard design, and as they are well known in the art, they need not be described in detail, except with reference to the various connections by means of which the control of temperature and other conditions is obtained. 'I'he generator may be supplied with the charging means 80, Fig. 2, described in my Patent, No. 1,468,190, and the superheater 3 may be provided with a blast cap 32 as shown. The carburetor and superheater may be provided respectively with checkerbrick 23 and 33 of any desired description. A wash box I3, relief holder Il, scrubber i5, storage holder i6 and recirculation pump il may be provided, these being of any desired or standard construction.-

From the bottom of the scrubber a liquid overow pipe 21 leads to the various devices for purifying, separating, cracking and otherwise treating the liquid constituents derived from the process, such products including tar, ammonia, and many other important constituents. From these constituents I am enabled to separate out a product which may be used successfully as a motor fuel. The specific apparatus for cracking, purifying and otherwise treating the said liquid constituents is not shown in detail, as wellknown apparatus may be employed for this purpose in connection with the other apparatus herein described.

The connections for supplying air, steam, gas.

fuel, oil and the like to the generator, carburetor outlets and their valves are designated by the letter B with suitable exponents; all steam and water inlets and their control vvalves by the letter C with suitable exponents, and all oil or atomized fuel pipes, inlet or control valves are designated by the letter D with suitable exponents. Valves which control the flow through the set as a whole, rather than particular inlets or outlets are designated by the letters E, F, G and H in Fig. 2. In Figs. 1, 3 and 4, which show the `various air supply pipes interconnected, and the various gas offtakes interconnected, additional control valves as I. I', J, J', K, K', L and L are required.

The connections to and from the three main shells of the set, namely the generator, carburetor and superheater, will be most readily understood by reference to Fig. 2, for the reason that in this ligure no attempt is made to show interconnections between the various air inlets, and between the various gas oiftakes. In practice it is frequently desirable to have the various gas offtakes entirelyseparate, for the reason that constituents of widely varying qualities can be taken of! from the individual ofltakes and used for various purposes. Where, however, all the gaseous constituents are to be mixed in a single holder, the arrangement shown in Figs. 1, 3 and 4 may be employed.

Referring particularly to Fig. 2, the air or gas inlet control valves are designated as A', A2, A3 and A4. The gas oiftake control valves are shown at B', B, B:i and B4. The steam or water inlet control valves are designated as C', at the bottom of the generator, C2 at the top of the generator, C3 at the top of the carburetor, C4 at the bottom of the carburetor, C5 at the bottom of the superheater, and C at the top of the superheater. The oil or atomized fuel, which may be either liquid or finely divided solid fuel, may be supplied through control valves D' at the bottom of the generator, D2 at the top of the generator. Da at the top of the carburetor, D4 at the bottom of the carburetor, D*s at the bottom of the superheater, and D at the top of the superheater. i

It will be noted that a permanently free and unobstructed passageway may be had for the passage of gas through the system as a whole through pipe connection I connecting the top of the generator with the top of the carburetor, and through pipe 43 connecting the bottom .of the carburetor with the bottom of the superheater.

Control valves E and F are located at the passage li connecting the bottom of the generator with the bottom of the carburetor, and control valves G and H are located in the passage 3l intermediate the tops of the carburetor and superheater.

The air supplied through the various inlets may come from separate and independent sources, if desired. and likewise the products taken oil from the various gas oitakes may go to separate wash boxes. purifiers, separators, and other known apparatus for treating combustible gas, and its by-products, both liquid and gaseous.

If desired, however, the air inlets may be interconnected, and likewise the gas oitakes may be interconnected, as shown in Figs. l, 3 and 4, all the gases passing from a single common offtake pipe to wash box i3, through pipe 2l` to relief holder il, thence through pipe 22 to the scrubber i5, containing trays 24 in which the liquid and gaseous constituents are roughly separated, as by means of the water, tar or other liquid spray 25 at the top of the scrubber, the

Where it is desired to recirculate'a portion of the combustible gases taken of! from the set in the manner set forth in Whitwell Patent No. 1,752,223 granted March 25, 1930, pipe 42l connects with pump or fan l1. the said pipe being supplied with a control valve 2l. Thus. when the valve 29 is open and the pump I1 in operation, a portion of the gases is by-passed through pipe 30 to the air main A whichsupplies all the air inlets.

If desired, a steam or other jet device placed in the by-pass connection may be employed for effecting the recirculation of gas, in place of the pump or fan I1.

Air may be supplied to the upright main A through pipe a controlled by a valve a. Likewise valves a2 and a3 are provided in the main' A, above and below the pipes a and 30. The air main A connects two sets of pipe connections. one at the top and one at the bottom of the set, through which the air or gas, or a mixture of both, may be supplied to the shells I, 2 and l, through the inlets previouslydescribed. The upper pipes are controlled by valves I, J, K, and L. while the lower pipes are controlled by similar valves I', J', K'. and L'.

Similar sets of pipes connect the gas offtakes at the top and bottom of the system, the upper set being controlled by valves B2 and B3, while the lower set is controlled by valves B' and B4. An upright gas main B connects the upper and lower sets of pipes, and from the bottom of this main the gas oiftake 20 leads to the wash box Il, as previously described.

The parts and connections described above in detail are to be understood as illustrative only, as showing one method for carrying out the processes described herein, but it will be understood that other means may be employed for carrying out the same or equivalent processes.

I will describe several cycles oi operation, all of which will produce a considerable amount of motor fuel and other liquid products. and at the same time as a by-product produce combustible gas which may be used in an industrial or commercial gas plant.

1. (a) Blastpreferably with air, as in the standard water gas operation, but add the secondary air at the bottom of the superheater. This will heat the superheater somewhat more than in the standard water gas operation, and the carburetor somewhat less. Referring to Fig. 2, this operation may be accomplished by opening valves A' and A4, E and the stack valve, all the other valves shown in this figure being' closed.

` (b) Run-during the run I introduce steam at the bottom of the generator, oil at the top of the carburetor. and ii desired, at the top of the superheater. taking off gas at the bottom of the superheater. The oil introduced into the superheater is vaporlzed and mingles with the carbureted water gas from the carburetor. further enriching such gas. The temperatures within the generator carburetor and superheater may be varied according to the type of productdesited.

After such a cycle, I introduce steam at the top of the superheater and take on gas at the bottom of the generator, to make water gas. and

to remove the carbon which has accumulated on the checkerbrick. It is obvious that the resultant gas will contain a much larger amount of liquids than standard water gas, which liquids may be recovered by any of the well-known methods.

It is not necessary to introduce oil at both the carburetor 'and superheater. as may be introduced at either point, or at the top of the generator, or at all three locations at once. Pulverized-solid fuel containing volatiles may be substituted for the oil. if desired.

The ilrst part of cycle Ib may be accomplished by leaving valves C', D. D and B* open, all the other valves shown in Fig. 2 being closed.

The second part of cycle Ib may be performed by leaving valves C", E and B open, all the others shown in Fig. 2 being closed.

2. (a) Blast-preferably with air, according to the standard water gas method. (b) Then introduce oil at the top of the superheater and take out the resulting combustible gases and vapors at the bottom of the generator. The gaseous product issuing from the bottom of the generator includes both condensible .and non-condensible gases. produced (l) by the vaporlzation of the oil or other hydrocarbon, (2) by distillation of the fuel within the fuel b ed of the generator, and (3) by the reaction between the highly heated oil gases or vapors and the carbonaceous material within the fuel bed of the generator. The quality of the product varies according to temperatures and pressures existing at different parts of the set, and according to the quantity of enriching material employed. (c) Follow this with a back steam run to remove the carbon. Such operation will deposit on the fuel bed acting as a bons, which may be recovered. 'Ihis method of operation will be desirable when oils of high free carbon content are used.

During cycle 2a, the valves A', E, Az and the stack valve are open, and all the others are closed. During 2b the valves D", E and B' are open and the others closed. During 2c the valves C, E and B are open. and the others closed.

The gas and volatiles are withdrawn from the bottom of the generator.

In this cycle also, the oil may be admitted at the carburetor, or at the top ofthe generator, or at two or more locations at once, if desired, and, as heretofore stated, pulverized solid fuel containing volatiles may be substituted for the oil.

3. (a) -Air blast in the standard manner and then (b) introduce oil at the top of the carburetor, if desired, and at the top oi the superheater. taking off gas at the bottom of the superheater,

using no steam during this part of the run. At the end of the oil run steam' may be used, employing either an up-run or a back-run to free the superheater. of carbon. When the set is operated in the manner above described, the principal function of the fuel bed in the generator is to supply the necessary heat during the blasting step to raise the temperature of the checkerwork in the carburetor and superheater sufficiently high to eiliciently vaporize or crack the hydrocarbon introduced duringthe subsequent oil run. The oil may be completely cracked to provide a fixed gas, or if lower temperatures are emp1oyed,'the oil is merely vaporized, and' portions of the out-going product may be subsequently condensed to produce a liquid fuel having the desired characteristics. The principal perheater of carbon, although water gas is produced by the reaction between the highly heated steam and the accumulated carbon on the checkerbrick. Ii desired. an air blast may follow the oil run and precede the back steam run, in order to maintain the temperature within the superheater at a sufficiently high level to insure the reaction between the steam and carbon. The air blast assists in the removal of carbon.

In 3a the valves A', E and Ail and the stack valve oi' Fig. 2 are open. and the others closed. During the ilrst part of 3b, in making an oil run, the valves C', H and B3 are open and the others closed. -In making a steam back-run, the valves C, E and B' of Fig. 2 are open and the others closed.

In order to separate the gases taken off from various outlets, it may be desirable to provide separate means for withdrawing and storing gas from each outlet, and I therefore prefer to provide means for the separation of the gas from each outlet from the other gases. For instance, the gases made when no oil is being introduced will be comparatively low in heating value, and may be used for heating stills, boilers or other accessories. The rich gas taken oil during the oil run may be ilrst stripped of its liquid contents and used for commercial purposes. Any ammonia present may also be separated in a wellknown manner.

The gases produced under dinerent cycles will vary materially in specific gravity, and this fact may make it desirable to keep them separate.

The gas, after having the valuable oils removed, may be of such quality that it is not desirable to use it as such. With the apparatus described, this gas may be passed through the set again by any suitable means, asthe pump Il, and

again subjected to heat, which will change it into the desired quality, such recirculation being described in the Patent No. 1,752,223 of George E. Whitwell, granted March 25, 1930.

It will be obvious that the present application embodies the back-run principle specifically claimed in its relation to a gas-making process in other of my patents and applications. The apparatus employed is substantially the standard Water gas apparatus, with modifications, which may be readily applied. and is simple in construction and easy to operate, in such a manner that an indefinite variety of temperature conditions may be obtained whereby the quality and composition of the resulting product may be regulated as desired. In addition, there is described an easy and eilicient means for producing the heat employed in the gas-making and oil-cracking opera ions, making use of the ordinary standard wate gas generator, this generator being utilized for the water gas reactions when desirable. Also, simple'means are provided for passing steam over the checkerbrick of the carburetor and superheater, thus freeing them from an accumulation of carbon.

The raw products used are cheap and easily obtainable. For example, crude oil may be used in the carburetor and superheater in place of the expensive gas oils at present employed, or finely divided powdered fuel containing volatiles Amay be employed in place of ythe oil. The gases employed are generally air and steam, though for the distilling operation hydrogen, or even an inert gas'such as nitrogen, may be used in place of or together with steam during the back-run, to serve as a carrier of heat, or as a source oi 2,055,190 purpose of the steam back-run is to free the sunitrogen, where ammonia. isto be recovered from the product. Also, where oxygen is available, this may be substituted for the ai'r used in blasting, under certain circumstances. Instead of steam, water may be employed. It will accordingly be understood that where the term "fluid" is used in the accompanying claims, it is intended to be given broad interpretation, as covering any or all of the above-mentioned products, as well as other gaseous or liquid media.

Obviouslyspeciflc details oi the apparatus may be varied within the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. An apparatus for making combustible gas, comprising a single generator adapted to contain a fuel bed therein, a single carburetor, a single superheater and a wash box, gas passages connecting the generator and carburetor and the carburetor and superheater respectively, combustible gas off-takes leading from both the top and bottom of the generator and from both the top and bottom of the superheater to the wash box; means for supplying primary air for blasting purposes to the generator; means for passing hydrocarbon fluid into and through the superheater,

thence into and through the carburetor and into and through the fuel bed in the generator; means for withdrawing the resultant combustible gas from the generator and means for recirculating a portion of the combustible gas thus withdrawn through the superheater, carburetor and generator.

2. An apparatus for making combustible gas, comprising a single generator adapted to contain a fuel bed therein, a single carburetor, a single superheater and a wash box, gas passages connecting the generator and carburetor and the carburetor and superheater respectively, combustible gas off-takes leading from both the top and bottom of the generator and from both the top and bottom of the superheater to the wash box; means for supplying primary air for blast-` ing purposes to the generator and means for supplying combustible gas making fluids to the generator, carburetor and superheater.

3. An apparatus for making combustible gas, comprising a single generator adapted to contain a fuel bed therein, a single carburetor, a single superheater, gas passages connecting the generator and carburetor, and the carburetor and superheater respectively, combustible gas offtakes leading from both the top and bottom of the generator, from both the top and bottom of the carburetor and from both the top and bottom of the superheater, means for supplying primary air for blasting purposes to the generator and means for `supplying combustible gas making fluids `to the generator, carburetor and superheater.

4. An apparatus for making combustible gas, comprising a single generator adapted to contain a fuel bed therein, a single carburetor, a single superheater and a wash box, gas passages connecting the generator and carburetor, and the carburetor and superheater respectively, combustible gas oitakes leading from both the top and bottom of the generator, from both the top and bottom of the carburetor and from both the top and bottom of the superheater to the wash box, means for supplying primary air for blasting purposes to the generator and means .for supplying combustible gas making fluids to the generator, carburetor and superheater.

DANIEL J. YOUNG. 

